Cherished Blood
by XxNarutoFanGurlxX
Summary: She cherished her friends, her family, her loved ones, and her life. She longed for peace and fought for what was right, but when destiny chose to face her, she encountered the opposite of joy and was forced to learn their part of the story.
1. Chapter One

**Summary: **She cherished her friends, her family, her loved ones, and her life. She longed for peace and fought for what was right, but when destiny chose to face her, she encountered the opposite of joy and was forced to learn their part of the story.

_**Warning: The following may contain some spoilers, excessive language, violent content, and mature themes. If you are not prepared to read this, please don't.**_

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does

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><p><strong><em>Title: Cherished Blood<em>**

**_Rating: Mature_**

**_Author: XxNarutoFanGurlxX_**

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><p>An intensifying burst of flames scorched the heavily leafed trees, causing a tremendous wildfire. It suddenly began to rain ashes as another deafening explosion set off south of the previous one. The atmosphere was filled with smoke and soot, almost so much that it made it nearly impossible to see or breathe. Behind the dense gray clouds, there lay a huge wildfire. It was a hungry lion, biting and clawing at all obstacles. It would make no hesitation to kill all, for power was all it needed to survive. The more, the bigger the flames would get.<p>

As the orange wisps tore at everything in their way, Deidara made his way out of the area. Speedily and cautiously, he leaped from branch to branch, gripping tightly onto his wounded limb. He grunted in pain as he forced himself through a narrow opening. He felt his gash enlarge on his arm and he tried his best to keep it from growing.

With no luck, he stopped dead in front of a wide stream and hid himself behind a large boulder. He slid to his bottom as he searched frantically in his shuriken holster for an extra roll of bandages. Fortunately, he found one. Quickly, he started wrapping it around his bloody cut. He winced as he tied the two ends together, still panting from his rampant journey across the burning forest.

Deidara was in the midst of the Fourth Great Ninja War between the allied forces and the remaining Akatsuki. Before he, Sasori, and a couple of other fallen members were revived, it was only Sasuke Uchiha, Madara Uchiha, Zetsu, and Kabuto. When Kabuto was ordered to infiltrate the island where they kept the two last jinchurikii hidden, it was then when he was revived. Soon after a miserable failure, his old partner Sasori was revived. The rest of the revivals followed.

He, Deidara, rogue of the Hidden Stone, was grateful toward Kabuto. It was great to be alive once again, but it did not exactly feel the same. He still felt as if he was a ghost of the past. In fact, it felt odd to be doing humanly actions again. Perhaps he was not used to this sudden revival?

But he and every other Akatsuki member knew that he was now living, and no longer dead. The only difference was his eye color, which significantly showed that some sort of jutsu had been activated - specifically the reanimation jutsu.

_Rustle._

The blonde leaped to the stream and crouched on the surface, his hands flying to his head as a paper bomb went off behind him. Pebbles had hit him on the neck and the ground had shook mightily, causing the clear water to splash gently against his ankles.

He gazed over his shoulder and slowly, his lips curled into a small smile. His eyes met the emerald gaze of a pink-haired kunoichi. She stood tall, shoulders broad. The look of her face said that she meant business.

The Akatsuki member turned to face her completely with a wry smile. "It's a delight to see you again, hm!"

A frown tugged at her lips and she furrowed her eyebrows. "I thought you were executed, as it says in the bingo book," she muttered as she pulled her gloves onto her petite hands. "Well, I suppose…it is a delight to meet you again after a while. Now lets just see if you get your ass beaten up like your red-headed pal."

He laughed deviously, "Ha! Don't you understand, Pinky? That was the past! Now that we were revived and given more power, we, the Akatsuki, are sure to defeat you meddling Leaf ninja!" He held his hand in front of him and launched clay explosives at the kunoichi, enjoying the sight of her dodging them continuously.

He suddenly held to fingers in front of his face. The bombs were immediately triggered and exploded all around the girl. When the smoke cleared, the grounds were empty and he kept his guard high. All of a sudden, he was attacked from behind.

He felt his spine crack slightly as she threw a rough punch at his back. He flipped backwards and skidded to a stop, his hand planted on the ground for support. He eyed her suspiciously. She must have improved a lot to catch him by surprise like that.

"Are you finished?" She reached into her shuriken holster and pulled out a wad of shuriken, "Or are we just getting started?"

"It would take a whole lot more to take me down, hm!"

Deidara held both hands out in front of him, sending clay birds flying in her direction. "Now this here! This is true art!"

One by one, the clay birds detonated, each one injuring the kunoichi. Each time she attempted to avoid his attack, she failed miserably. His tactic was brilliant. Not only he had sent his clay birds after her, but he had also placed a wave of them hidden in the trees during her short period of reign.

It was minutes before she collapsed to her knees with a thud. She was panting horribly, blood dripping down her sides.

The blonde slowly strode to her and bent over her. He glared at her as she coughed up blood, her chest rising up and down continuously. He revealed a mock grin that he knew would agitate her to the point where her face would boil red. She almost looked cute just sitting there, her hair bunched up in a mess and her eyes looking out at him from underneath her thick lashes.

"Fuck," she breathed onto his face. "You look more like shit up close."

He felt his brow twitch in anger. Was she making fun of him, despite the fact that she knew that he could kill her right at this very moment?

All of a sudden, he lashed out at her. He grabbed her by the neck and pushed her up a nearby tree, slightly pressing his body against hers. The heat between them rose mightily. It was so tremendous that it made his stomach burn ferociously. She to wiggle her way out of his grasp, but he tightened his hand around her fragile neck. He felt her muscles tighten and heard her breaths shorten.

Deidara allowed his lips to ghost over her ear lobe. His tongue shot out and flicked at it, causing her to shake. "You, my dear, better listen up good," he whispered huskily. "I will make no hesitation to end your life, do you understand? Don't you get it? I'm sparing you, unless you decide to let your mouth run along those dirty string of words again. Hm."

The pink-haired kunoichi chuckled. "You son of a bitch."

He forced her further against the hollow tree.

"Deidara, don't."

Deidara glanced over his shoulder and saw Itachi nearing him slowly with a ghastly expression. He loosened his grip and finally released the girl. He watched as she lifelessly hung her head, her emerald eyes growing pale of its bright color.

"Just take her hostage," continued the older Uchiha sibling. "She will act as our bait for the nine-tails jinchurikii, Naruto Uzumaki. Aside from that, she may be useful toward us in the future, relating to health conditions."

Deidara snorted, "I know that she is the pupil of the great Tsunade Senju, but bait?"

"She is one of Naruto's closest friends and is her teammate. I am telling you, her absence will infuriate the boy and he will eventually come crawling to us," explained Itachi.

"I see," sighed the blonde, "Then she must also be the ex-teammate of your younger brother, Sasuke."

Itachi nodded. "Correct…she is Sakura Haruno."

"Hm, I guess it wouldn't hurt to take her hostage—"

Deidara rose an eyebrow at the kunoichi who had suddenly collapsed onto him. He hesitatingly brought his hands up to her waist to keep her steady. Glancing awkwardly at Itachi, he hoisted her up onto his shoulder and kept her flimsy body in place by planting his hand firmly on her back. She almost seemed like a rag doll hanging from his shoulder.

The two Akatsuki members stood silently and locked their gazes.

"Do you sense another presence?" questioned Itachi, quietly scanning the area.

"Yeah. More than one."

"I thought so."

Deidara stepped forward and called out, "Show yourselves!"

It was a few moments before a three-man cell, consisting of the Great Copy Ninja, former experiment of Orochimaru, and a member of the Hyuuga clan.

"Release Sakura at once," demanded Kakashi, his mismatched eyes growing dark.

"I don't think we will," smirked Deidara.

Hinata readied herself and put herself in a fighting stance. She held one hand in front of her, the other behind her back. "L-Let her go, or else we'll take the matter into our own hands!"

Itachi activated his sharingan. "I don't think that's going to happen."

All of a sudden, wood burst from the ground below and shot at Deidara. Stealthily, the blonde avoided the ambush and leaped into the air. As he slowly fell back to the ground, he summoned his bird just in time for him to land safely. "I'll see you all later!" he laughed with a wave of his hand.

From the corner of Itachi's eyes, he saw Kakashi's hand spark blue and immediately foresaw the jonin's attack. To avoid further damage, Itachi sprinted toward the Copy Ninja and performed his set of hand signs.

"Lotus fire flower bombs!"

Fire blazed at the squad from each direction, their ferocious flames blinding them. To their fortune, they were able to dodge them successfully, but their clothes were singed in the process. When the fire cleared, as well as the smoke, it revealed nothing but Itachi standing on the surface of the stream.

Kakashi swallowed. Hard.

Itachi performed a hand sign, "Until next time_…_"

A cloud of black feathers enveloped the Uchiha and when they all fluttered to the ground, he was nowhere to be seen.

**_~ X x . . . x X ~_**

**__**"My, my. Deidara-san, what have you brought us this time?" Zetsu rose to the surface of the cobblestone flooring, his head barely visible behind the chunks of leaves surrounding his head. He glanced questioningly at Deidara, then at Itachi, who was following slowly behind.

"The pupil of Tsunade-sama, hm." Deidara shrugged his shoulder that the unconscious girl laid on to keep her balanced. Irritably, he rolled his darkened eyes and sucked in a deep breath, "Itachi-san told me to take her hostage instead of ridding her. I would have loved to end her life, but apparently she is the best friend of Naruto Uzumaki."

"The nine-tailed fox boy?" hummed Zetsu. "Wow, what a handful. I suppose she is useful after all—"

"_Who _is useful?"

Two figures emerged sluggishly from the shadows. When they stepped into the vague rays of sunlight that poked through the holes of the ceiling, the three other Akatsuki members realized it was none other than Madara and Sasuke Uchiha.

Sasuke's eyes opened slowly, revealing his eternal mangekyo sharingan, the original eyes of Itachi Uchiha, his elder brother. The dark-haired boy nearly flinched when he saw his former teammate dangling from Deidara's broad shoulder. His nose crinkled in disgust.

"You brought _her_ here? For whatever reason?" pondered Sasuke, raising a brow at the blonde.

Deidara grinned, "You should know, Sasuke. She will lure the Uzumaki here, and then once we capture that damn boy, we will overpower the world of ninja! If we get lucky enough, we might be able to capture the Copy Ninja if he falls for our trap too."

Zetsu chuckled, "Sasuke-san, it appears as if there will be a future reunion."

Sasuke clenched his fists in irritation and sent a deadly glare toward the plant-like Akatsuki member. "You_…_you _all_ make me sick," he spoke coldly, returning to the darkness. "You all make me sick_…"_

__Everyone stood still silently for minutes until Madara broke the silence with the impact of his weapon on the ground. His red and purple eyes icily stared out into the distance, "Just let the child be. I know he won't be liking the presence of his former comrade, but I will happily make a change of plans using this kunoichi right here. Like you said Deidara, we will use this girl as bait. However, we have to be careful. We all do not know whether Sasuke still has feelings for her and the rest of his past comrades. We cannot afford to push her too far, understand?"

"Understood," they all chimed quietly.


	2. Chapter Two

**_A/N:_** I have influenza and it's killing my Rainbow of Imagination (yes, I have that). Enough said. You can finish the puzzle.

_**Warning: The following may contain some spoilers, excessive language, violent content, and mature themes. If you are not prepared to read this, please don't.**_

Disclaimer - I do not own Naruto, Masashi Kishimoto does

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><p><em><strong>Cherished Blood <strong>_

_**Chapter Two**_

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><p>Sakura woke up to the faint light beaming against her eyelids. She groggily opened her eyes and stared at the dark, blurred ceiling that hovered above her. It was a while before her vision cleared, and it was then when all of the memories hit her in the back of her head.<p>

She immediately sat up, but an electrifying jolt of pain made it hard for her to keep still. Wincing slightly, she glanced at her abdomen, only to find the upper portion of her body bare with only the binds she had put on yesterday to cover her breasts from sight.

"Don't worry, I didn't do anything rash."

Wearily, she eyed the entrance of the cold room she was resting in and found Itachi entering slowly. He seemed as lifeless as Deidara, his eyes the same dark color as the blonde's, but after looking into them she found sympathy and worry. Though he was an evil doer, she felt as if she could relax around him just a little.

"I had to remove your shirt in order to treat the wounds Deidara gave you, otherwise, they would have been infected," he explained silently as he sat cross-legged beside her. "Our home-base isn't the tidiest place and we can't afford to get you terribly sick or injured."

She glared at his pale face, wondering why people such as the Akatsuki would need to preserve her life. She wouldn't make of much use toward anybody, unless it was relating to health conditions. Healing was all she ever did. That and beating the shit out of arrogant people.

"Why would the Akatsuki care so much about keeping me alive?" she asked, eyebrows creased.

"We have plans that involve using you," he stated calmly, shrugging his shoulders bluntly.

"Plans such as?" she wondered haughtily.

He laughed coldly, the rasp in his voice making her insides churn. Glaring at her with his eyes faintly glowing red, he whispered, "Lets just say that you're going to help us get that idiot-boy."

Right when he finished his sentence, she threw her clenched fist at his face. Unfortunately, she wasn't quick enough and missed terribly. Instead of punching Itachi's face, she punched the wall and left a dangerously deep dent. She removed her fist from the hole in the wall and saw that her knuckles were bleeding slightly. She glared icily in Itachi's direction, anger boiling in her chest.

The Akatsuki member simply sat still, observing the wrecked kunoichi as she caught her breath. Noticing her bloody knuckles, he commented, "My, you hurt yourself again, darling."

Sakura's brow twitched at his statement. Now she was his _darling_? How dare he call her his darling! He was playing with her! He was abusing his control over her! How dare he!

The pink-haired kunoichi growled low and slumped against the cold stone wall, eyeing and looking at the Uchiha with much distaste. She didn't find him very appealing, even if he was a bit kinder than the others. They were all the same. They were all rotten men who didn't deserve a life.

"So, I'm basically going to be your little toy to play around with?" she assumed, the bitterness obvious in her tone.

"You're bait," he corrected silently. "We know better than to push your buttons, Sakura-chan. You were taught under Tsunade Senju, as well as the Great Copy Ninja Kakashi Hatake. We can't afford to do foolish things when a strong, intelligent kunoichi from Konoha is present. It would for sure ruin Madara's plans."

She folded her arms in front of her chest, ignoring the stingy feeling her bleeding hand was giving her. "I suppose I'm going to be stuck here for a while then, much to my displeasure. I'd hate to be around a bunch of bastards."

To her surprise, Itachi did not flinch at her rude comment. Instead, he gazed at her with soft tangible eyes that sent a somewhat calm feeling running throughout her body. "Every single man here in this organization has a reason for being a 'bastard', Sakura-chan. We had a choice, and we made the choice to walk on the dark path."

"But there is no good reason to walk on this path you speak of," she noted.

The dark-haired ninja sighed and removed the slashed hitai-ate of the Hidden Leaf from his forehead. He ran the tip of his index finger across the scratch in the metal that followed through the symbol of her village. His expression grew sour. "The only reason I'm here is to protect my little brother."

Sakura stared at him, her heart aching at the sight of him dwelling in his past memories. She pitied him. Though she hated him with all she had, she pitied him. She couldn't help but to feel sorry for the young man. "You tried to protect…Sasuke?" she managed to say.

Mentioning that name just brought back those horrid moments. They were truly terrifying.

Sasuke had left her and Team Seven. It was hard to accept it back then when their relationship was still tight. She could recall the terrible feelings she shared with Naruto. She could remember the many tears she had shed in the process of forgetting the dreaded boy. Both she and Naruto had to forget him for the better. He was becoming more and more distant from Konoha, making it harder for them to bring him back. She had given up on him, and as for Naruto, he continued to fight.

"A long time ago, our clan, the Uchiha, was planning a revolt against Konoha. I knew that if they rebelled, my beloved village would fall," explained Itachi. "But on the other hand, if I obliterated my clan, I would be stuck with the emptiness of my heart forever. I was frustrated and I was having a hard time making a decision. It was either destroy the people I hold precious to me, or let all of it fall and dissipate."

She watched him intently as he played with his hitai-ate. She had never in her life faced the other side of the story. She had never thought of listening to their story and she had never once took a moment to look at their past. She did not know how bitter of a life they have had. She assumed that they simply just put it all behind them, but looking at this broken Uchiha in front of her, she knew she made assumptions too soon.

"Then I looked at the future of Konoha. If their dreams and ambitions were crushed, the purpose of me living would mean nothing," he continued in a hushed voice. "I managed to kill everyone in my clan…all but my little brother, Sasuke. I just couldn't bring it upon myself to send that katana flying at his heart. So, I made him think that I was evil and made him hunger for power. I made his goal to kill me, so that when we meet again he would be stronger. Then when I would fall, he would realize that what he had in Konoha was important."

"But he never came back to Konoha," Sakura said quietly. "He abandoned everyone and everything to avenge you."

"I know," he sighed. "Because Madara told him the truth too soon."

"Then…you must dislike Madara?"

He nodded. "I hold something against him, but if I were to attack him, he would undo this reanimation jutsu and I would not be able to watch my little Sasuke anymore."

Sakura hung her head and fidgeted with her fingers. He actually had a story behind all of this, and hearing this story now made her realize that he still had a heart. His heart was lying right in the core of Konoha which was apparently what he loved most, not including Sasuke. If Itachi had a heart, then it was possible that the others had one as well.

Learning about her enemy's lives could pass time in the future.

"Itachi-san, Madara wants to see you." A carnivorous plant-like creature emerged halfway through the stone flooring, his mismatched eyes coldly looking at the dark-haired ninja. "He needs your assistance with pairing up our members for a three-man cell."

"Very well," he breathed as he rose to his feet. "Zetsu, show the girl to our training hall. Watching some of our fellow inmates train might amuse her for the time being, and give her some bandages to fix up that wound on her knuckles while you're at it."

Zetsu glanced at the huge dent in the wall. The brightly colored half smiled and chuckled, "Na na, what a big dent. Did the girl cause this damage, Itachi-san?"

"Yes, Shiro-Zetsu," answered Itachi. He faced the kunoichi and observed her as she wearily caught his gaze. "And you, your shirt is hanging over there on the dresser. Just get changed and maybe put your healing jutsu to use to get yourself up and walking."

Itachi held to fingers up to his face and a cloud of black feathers enveloped him within a second. When they all fluttered to the floor, he was gone from sight.

Sakura shook her head as she slowly stood up. An aching pain shot up through her thighs and she bit her lip, trying to endure it. She wobbled over to the mentioned dresser and slipped into her shirt. It was slightly torn at the hem and was singed toward the end on her shoulder, but other than those two flaws everything else seemed in place.

Like Itachi had told her, she used her healing jutsu to fix the broken chakra passages in her body, accumulating it so that each and every one would mend back together. When she finished, she felt rejuvenated and even the wound on her knuckles stopped bleeding.

She directed her attention to Zetsu, who was still sitting halfway into the floor. The odd plant member slowly rose out of the ground, and when he did remove himself completely from it, he rolled his shoulders back to release the gained tension.

"Itachi-san must have taken great care of you. Your cuts and bruises seem to be healing fine," commented Shiro-Zetsu, ignoring the dark half's disoriented groan. "Come now, I shall bring you to the training hall like Itachi-san had said."

Sakura nodded and followed the Akatsuki member out of the room. The hallways were dark, pale, and cold. They seemed like never ending hallways of hell, in her opinion. The atmosphere was eerie and she did not find that very pleasing. She never liked an eerie atmosphere. It always made her insides churn uncomfortably.

"So how did Itachi treat you…Sakura-chan, is it?" Shiro-Zetsu asked, looking back over his shoulder.

She looked at him, shoving her hands into the pockets of her shorts. "I thought you already knew."

"Hm, just trying to start a conversation here," he shrugged bluntly, redirecting his attention to the hallway.

"Well I can't converse normally to someone who is a complete stranger toward me, and more importantly, who is a complete villain. I can't trust you or anybody else here in this organization," she mumbled.

"Ah, how unfortunate," he said silently. "And I was just trying to make a new friend."

She heard the dark side of Zetsu grumble, "Shut up, Shiro. Just leave the girl alone."

"Gee, Kuro. Like I said, I'm trying to make a new friend."

"I don't care if you're trying to make a new friend. You're irritating me and you're probably annoying the hell out of her as well!"

"Fine, fine. I'll shut up."

She blinked confusingly. She knew that Zetsu had two different split personalities, but she never knew how frequent they argued. It puzzled her, especially since they were basically one person.

It was a few more minutes before Zetsu led her into a big, dome-like room. The two of them stood stone still at the entrance as a huge clay dragon detonated in the middle, followed by a familiar laughter. She eventually spotted Deidara sparring Sasuke after the smoke cleared.

"Kya!" Deidara sent a roundhouse kick at Sasuke's head, but the young Uchiha dodged his attack smoothly. His hand suddenly sparked blue and the sound of birds chirping filled the atmosphere. He threw his sparking fist at the blonde and it struck him in the abdomen.

Before he knew it, Deidara used the substitution jutsu and reappeared behind him, a mock grin spreading across his face. The clay user wrapped his arm around Sasuke's neck firmly and held a kunai close to the boy's chest. "I win," he hissed with a smile. "Give up, boy."

Sasuke chuckled hoarsely. All of a sudden, Deidara heard a katana being pulled from its shaft and he immediately found a blade against his neck. He frowned with distaste, knowing that he instead had been defeated.

"Shit," hissed Deidara, realizing that the real Sasuke was behind him.

"Assuming your enemy is defeated is one of the many despicable things an incapable shinobi does," Sasuke murmured nonchalantly, his eyes faintly glowing red.

"Are you saying I'm incapable?" spat Deidara as he tried elbowing the Uchiha.

Sasuke countered Deidara's counterattack and threw him onto the floor. He held his katana out, the tip of the blade pointing toward his head. "You act like an immature child," he muttered bitterly. "You make me sick."

Deidara growled, "Pfft. That's fucking bullshit."

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><p><strong><em>TBC<em>**

**_Reviews are Appreciated_**


	3. Chapter Three

_**A/N:**_ Well, I've completely healed from influenza now, but I still might be contaminated with it. Anyways, hope you enjoy this little chappie. I took some time out of my studies to do this for you guys.

Disclaimer: Unfortunately, I do not own the wonderful world of Naruto. It all belongs to Masashi Kishimoto.

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><p><em><strong>Cherished Blood<strong>_

_**Chapter Three**_

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><p>Sasuke harshly shoved Deidara, causing him to fall forward. He watched with mere interest as the blonde fell to his knees, then pointed his katana at his head. He hated Deidara the most out of all of the other Akatsuki members. He always lollygagged around and boasted about his so-called art. What disgusted him the most was how he bitterly despised the Uchiha clan, most especially him and his older sibling.<p>

Allowing his chakra to flow into his weapon, he muttered gruffly, "You act like an immature child. You make me sick."

He saw his opponent twitch in absolute anger. He knew that he crossed the line, not that it mattered to him. What did matter was gaining more strength and power in order to obliterate the village that turned traitor against his older brother. His only goal was to destroy Konoha and the very team that was a mere obstacle in his eyes, Team Seven.

"Pfft. That's fucking bullshit." Deidara growled fiercely, glaring icily over his shoulder.

Foreseeing another attack from the Akatsuki member, he forced a great amount of chakra into the tip of the blade, therefore causing a huge spark. The delicate sound of birds chirping filled the training facility once again and his katana was eventually enveloped with a bluish aura that sparked every now and then. The maddening urge to kill spread throughout his body and pulled back his arm. Yelling at the top of his lungs, he stabbed an unfamiliar object that felt too odd to be completely human flesh.

He had heard the heart throbbing slash of his weapon, the gushing sound of blood, and the painful grunt that he hungered for. But instead, he had attacked Sasori, Deidara's former partner in the association. Sasori was tightly gripping onto the blade of his katana, his puppet hand slightly dripping with blood. On the other side, he was holding Deidara by the wrist, preventing him from throwing a punch.

Sasuke's boiling anger and frustration then transformed into arrogance and sour disappointment. He seized the flow of his chakra and pulled back his katana, sliding it slowly back into its shaft. He stared with practiced nonchalance at Sasori, who was staring back in his direction.

He saw pure defiance in the shadows of his eyes. Defiance and pity — two of the many things he absolutely, most utterly despised. He frowned, his eyebrows bunching, and muttered selflessly, "You of all people, why would you end such a fantastic spar?" He did not expect an answer from the redhead, and he never got one. He glanced momentarily at Deidara, who was now breathing ragged breaths. "And you," he directed the conversation toward the blonde, "Did you honestly think a buffoon like you would be able to defeat me? How ignorant." He smiled wryly, his thirst for human flesh growing once again.

Deidara's anger sparked immediately, something that he sought for, and threatened him with the lift of his clenched fist. He bared his teeth at him, growling low in the process. "You fucking Uchiha brat! You have no respect toward me or anyone else in this alliance!" he shouted, swiping his hand across the air. "Well you know what? You are just a mere tool to us Akatsuki. A pawn we choose to play with whenever we wish to!"

Sasuke's smile faltered.

"Deidara…stop," murmured Sasori, his gaze glued on the Uchiha. "You are only angering him more."

Paying no attention to Sasori, Deidara continued his barking. "You were just a lost child who lost everything important to them! You lost everyone! Your friends, relatives, and family! You only had your dumb ass brother to hold onto, and when you killed him, revenge wasn't so sweet, huh?" He chuckled hoarsely, his eyes growing wide in anticipation. "Now you…of all people…are the weakest of them all! Your hunger for power blurred your vision and you made the biggest mistake of your life. So what if Itachi is still here with us? That isn't enough for you, am I right!"

"Stop…" Sasuke hung his head lifelessly, feeling the tremendous rage growing within him.

"Stop it," warned Sasori. "He _will _kill you, with _no_ hesitation at all."

"Like I give a shit!" yelled the blonde. He glared back at the dark-haired boy, who was sulking silently in his position. "You abandoned all of your important, precious friends, and now that you have absolutely nothing to cling onto, you blame it on them because you're too afraid to blame it on yourself!"

"Stop…stop it…" Sasuke clenched his fists and gritted his teeth. His muscles suddenly tensed and his body stiffened.

"All of you! You are all the same! You seek for power then ruin yourselves in your journey for it," Deidara said as he snarled fiercely. "You look down upon everything and see everything as a nuisance! Well, you know what?"

"Sh…shut up…"

Deidara, hacking a terrible, spine-chilling laugh, screamed, "You Uchiha are a _nuisance_!"

"_I SAID SHUT UP_!"

_**~ X x . . . x X ~**_

The world suddenly froze. Stars burst in his vision and his eyesight waned. Just then, an excruciating pain spread out from his abdomen and sent blood flying out of his mouth. He blinked, confusion and pain consuming his senses, and vaguely pointed out a figure hovering above him. Two gleaming red eyes shined in his direction, nearly blinding him. He winced as he felt the pain increase, then managed to glance at what was causing this hell.

His head snapped back immediately and he felt more blood trickle down the corner of his lips. It was a fist. And it was digging further and further into his stomach. Soon, he knew, that the force come to a point where it would be so overwhelming that it would leave a hole in his body. He groaned, his eyelids clasping together, as a deep-cut voice pierced his eardrums.

"Do not ever speak of the Uchiha in vain. I will _kill_ you and you will regret those words. Are you listening to me Deidara? I will _kill_ you, even if that means disobeying Madara and going against the whole alliance."

His attacker sounded extremely familiar.

It was Sasuke.

All of a sudden, the boy was pried off of him and dragged away. Though his dark, eerie eyes were no longer to be seen, he knew that he would not be able to get that nightmarish glare out of his mind ever again.

**_~ X x . . . x X ~_**

Sakura watched in horror as Sasuke was literally dragged away from the injured blonde. Even from a far distance, she could feel his rage and horrible aura. It stung her skin and sent prickly vibes up and down her spine. She had never in her entire life seen Sasuke in such an angry state. She had seen him hysterical with the hunger for blood, but this was completely different.

She could feel the hatred radiating in the atmosphere. She could feel the frustration and anger swirling around her head. This was no ordinary hatred. It was mixed with emotions that even she could not describe. This, indeed, was something unlikely.

"Sasuke has changed, hasn't he…Sakura-chan?"

She turned to look at Zetsu and found him looking at her expectantly. She allowed her gaze to drift her her feet, remembering the bittersweet memories of Team Seven. "I feel like he is a stranger," she murmured. "He is so…dark."

"The death of his dear Itachi broke him," explained Zetsu. "Though he was revived, Sasuke feels as if it's not enough. He is still seeking for more power and he is still after his dreams of destroying Konoha."

Sakura shuddered at Zetsu's words. The thought of Konoha's collapse frightened her. A lot.

"Unfortunately for you, you are most likely going to have to help us with that deed."

Her eyes widened in shock and anger. She stared daggers at Zetsu, grinding her teeth to fight off the urge of punching him. She wanted no part of their hideous plan and she wanted no part of them. She was right after all. They were all stupid, shit-faced, no good shinobi.

"And if you don't cooperate, we will be forced to kill someone…meaningful."

Meaningful. Precious.

Those words pierced right through her like the wind.

Did that mean that they were holding one of her comrades hostage as well?

"W-Who…did you…take?" she managed to ask, chewing on her bottom lip nervously.

"One of your leaders. A captain, I think. Ah, um, I believe Hidan said his name was Yamato."

Her temper snapped like a twig and she threw her fist at his face, a knot tightening in the pit of her stomach. She had known for Yamato for almost four years now, and she had learned to like him and develop a friendship with him. Though he had often habits of scaring the shit of out Naruto (which she found extremely annoying), she grew close to him. He was a kind man, who was surprisingly only four years younger than her former sensei, Kakashi. His soft yet protective personality was something that she had came to admire and she was not going to allow someone so special to die.

Her fist was seized merely inches away from Zetsu.

"Zetsu, you came so close to getting yourself hurt by this infant."

Sakura, hearing the unfamiliar voice, turned her head to the side, only to find a slick-haired man glaring at her with mischievous eyes. He smiled crookedly at her, tightening the grip around her wrist.

"I didn't expect her to be so quick with attacks," sighed Zetsu. "I guess she truly is the spoken star pupil of the Fifth Hokage, Tsunade Senju."

"Heh," snorted the mysterious ninja. "I don't see much."

She threw her other fist at him, infuriated with his rude comment. Unfortunately, he caught it with ease and twisted her arm, pushing it against her back. She nearly yelped in pain, but held it back by biting her lip. She froze when she felt his dense breath hit the back of her neck. It was then when she realized how close he was to her.

"Now, babe. There's no time for fighting now," he chuckled huskily.

Her eyebrow twitched. "You son of a—" She stopped her sentence short when she felt her arm painfully twist again. "You fucking bastard!" she hissed, trying to resist him. "Let go of me this instant!"

"Hidan," the dark side of Zetsu warned carefully, "the girl can hurt you, even if your immortal. Though you can't die, she can make you feel horrid. I've heard from Deidara that her punches are like being damned into hell."

Hidan snickered, still holding onto Sakura. "Whatever. Speaking of that little blonde-headed twit, he needs immediate medical treatment and you, girly, are the perfect one for that job."

Sakura shook her head and bared her teeth. "Why in the hell should I help you! You're all fucking bastards!"

"Say whatever you want, babe, but would you really be willing to let your old buddy Yamato down?"

Her heart stopped for a moment and she almost choked on her own breath. She had forgotten that they took Yamato hostage.

"So what's it gonna be?" She heard Hidan's rasp voice from behind her.

Hanging her head slightly and thinking that she was going to go to hell for this, she murmured in defeat, "Fine. Where's Deidara—"

"Deidara is lying over there with Sasori, wallowing in pain."

Chills ran up her spine at the hoarse, grim voice. The kunoichi reluctantly directed her attention toward Sasuke, who was standing a few feet to her right, arms crossed and head down. He still seemed infuriated about the interference in his spar.

"And Hidan," he continued meekly without looking at them in the eye, "Let go of her. You're hurting her."

Hidan did as he was told and smirked mischievously. "Since when did you care so much about someone?"

Sakura stood silently, gazing softly at the boy that was once her love, her infatuation. He had changed over the years they have been apart. He looked extremely pale, almost ghastly, and his hair hung lifelessly in front of his forehead. Instead of wearing the attire Orochimaru had given him, he was wearing his own. A sleeveless top, unzipped to his waistband. He wore the same bottom clothing like she had remembered, but he for some reason had chains hanging down the sides of his legs. Perhaps a new way of attacking?

Sasuke's gaze suddenly met hers and she shuddered tremendously. Those shadowy eyes…they frightened her.

"Love, care, kindness, desire," he muttered silently. "They no longer exist in my eyes. I don't care nor look out for no one but myself. I don't hold any bonds or friendships. I severed them all." He stared at her darkly and frowned. "Sakura…she is just a mere weakling that Madara happened to pick up along the way. Now get out of my way, fools."

The pink-haired kunoichi watched observantly as her abandoned teammate brushed right past her as if she meant nothing toward him. She glanced back over her shoulder, only to find him disappearing into the gloomy hallway that she despised greatly. Sighing, she faced forward and noticed Hidan's and Zetsu's callous expressions. It appeared that they had no liking toward the boy.

Breaking the unbearable silence, she croaked, "Okay…where's Deidara?"

Hidan woke up from his trance and grinned at her. "Finally getting down to business, huh? Well, follow me darling and I'll lead the way. Deidara's resting over there in the corner of the training hall. He looks pretty exhausted."

"You talk a whole lot for some chump," she mumbled absentmindedly, stressed from his continuous blabbering.

From the corner of her eye, she saw his shoulders tense. "Hm, you have a nasty attitude, kid. Better learn to control it, otherwise, you're going to find yourself dying within a split second." His change of manner meant that he was serious, so she chose not to play with his strings anymore.

It was a couple more moments before she reached the injured Akatsuki member. Sasori and Hidan cleared the way for her and stood off to the side to avoid interference with her work. She stared down at Deidara as he released a ragged breath, blood trickling down the corner of his lips. She made note of his injuries. He had two wounds on each cheekbone, and probably more on his body since his coat was completely bedraggled.

She had to take a closer look.

"What…the hell are you doing…P-Pinky?" groaned Deidara as he gazed at her from underneath his lashes.

Sakura ignored him and took hold of the collar of his clothes.

"He-Hey!"

"Deidara, keep your mouth shut," insisted Sasori nonchalantly. "Speak any more and you will become worse than you already are. Just let the girl heal you. Kabuto would not be very pleased if he found you torn apart. You would be completely useless toward his reanimation jutsu, and you don't want that, don't you?"

Deidara frowned slightly, but accepted the fact that he had to be healed.

Sakura pulled the coat open when she got a chance, revealing a lean yet bloody body. Her eyebrows bunched at the sight of a deep wound near his chest. She hoped that didn't damage his heart in any way. Carefully and gently, she placed her hand on his chest, feeling the gooey liquid slither beneath her palm. She concentrated her chakra on her spot and immediately sensed signs of a damaged chakra pathway.

"You have a few damaged chakra pathways," she explained in such a way that made her sound professional. "I'm going to heal them, but it might sting a little so bare with me. Got it?"

He nodded weakly and she began the process. A few minutes into her operation, he began wriggling slightly, preventing her from healing him any further. She released an exasperated breath and hissed, "Stop being an ass and let me heal you, goddammit!"

Deidara finally managed to allow himself to cooperate with her. It was nearly twenty minutes before all of his wounds were completely healed. The only things that remained on his body were scars and a few slightly opened cuts.

"Does anybody have any bandages with them at the moment?" she questioned as she ran her index finger down the blonde's jaw. She had to admit, he had pretty nice features, even if he was still basically dead. The only thing that she disliked about him was the dark, eerie eyes — a result from the reanimation jutsu.

"Here." Hidan rummaged through his ninja pouch and pulled out a roll of bandages. He tossed it to her and she caught it swiftly.

She murmured a silent 'thank you' before wrapping Deidara's body with the roll. When she finished, she helped prop his back up against the wall behind him. As he slowly recuperated, she observed him closely. The top half of his body was completely bare and clean of blood since she had wiped it all away. His sweatpants clung loosely around his waist and was torn toward his shins.

He picked at the bandage wrapped around his forehead, wincing slightly as he did. "Ugh…do I have to wear these bandages? They're extremely irritating!" he grumbled softly, his voice cracking a little.

His partner, Sasori, looked down upon him with the same dark eyes. "Yes, you have to. Once Kabuto deactivates the jutsu during the night, your wounds would reopen and get infected if you don't keep those bandages on. It's best that you do, if you want to keep living your life."

Sakura stared up at the red-haired Akatsuki member. If she could recall correctly, she had battled him before with Lady Chiyo of Sunagakure. It was an intensifying battle and she was hurt badly, but in the end, he ended up being the defeated. It surprised her when she realized that he was only a mere puppet with his heart transplanted in it.

Suddenly, Sasori caught her stare. He glared at her icily, his expression undecipherable. He whispered, "Those emerald eyes…they are familiar."

She looked down at her lap. Frankly, he did not remember her at all.

"Your death seemed like a painful one," she replied quietly. "To be killed by your own two parents must be terrifying."

His specs widened at her response, meaning that he must have remembered her. Though he was able to recall, he made no comment whatsoever. Instead, he departed the area, leaving her and the other two all alone.

Hidan snickered. "Psh, so you were the one that eliminated him with that old granny of his. I'll admit, I did not expect a puny kunoichi like you to defeat such high caliber like Sasori."

Her eyebrows bunched at his statement and she retorted, "Only the weak speak such things."

The slick-haired man flinched, then growled low to himself. "I dare you to say that again."

She rose to her feet slowly and stepped in front of him, shoulders abroad. "I said only the _weak_ speak such things."

He reached for his scythe, but she skillfully pinned him against the cold, concrete wall, her arm pressed against his neck. She pressed closer to him and the heat between them rose mightily, but she paid no attention to that. She sluggishly came closer and closer until her lips were right next to his ears. She felt him stiffen at the feel of her breasts on his chest and she felt him inhale her feminine scent.

"Don't even think about it…_darling_."

And with that having said, she turned on her heel and strode off in the other direction.

Hidan was left baffled with a turn of events. He called out dryly, "Where do you think you're going, Missy!"

"Back to my room!"

"You don't even know your way around our base!"

"I'll find my way, so fuck off!"

Hidan, folding his arm, released a harsh breath into the air. He could not believe she would do such intimate things and he could not believe that she told him to fuck off. He frowned, feeling frustrated and puzzled at the same time.

"Uh…Hidan…"

"What do you want now, Deidara!" snapped Hidan.

Deidara, pointing his finger at the lower half of his body, murmured, "You're…aroused."

Hidan looked down and found Deidara's statement true.

"Fuck…That little bitch!"

* * *

><p><em><strong>TBC<strong>_

_**Reviews Are Appreciated**_


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